Inflow Outflow by Debbie Broadley

Sitting on the beach and watching the ocean, we get lulled by the push and pull of the waves, the rise and fall, the ebb and flow of the tide. Some days the ocean is placid and clear with gentle rolling waves and other days its dark, brooding and pounding. We sit and we watch the splendour of nature, the power and​the beauty of this incredible force of water.

We don’t try to tame the sea, we don’t try to control it, we don’t grab onto a wave and insist it stays on the shore. We allow it to be as it is in all of its magnificence, its destruction and its gentleness.

We all have those times in our lives when we are riding the waves of joy, nothing seems to be able to go wrong. On a high, life is good we are invincible, BUT are we? Waves break, tides change, energy rises and subsides. Life has a rhythm that unconsciously we have no control over. We cannot anchor the waves to the shore forcing them to stay there a little longer to allow us an extended experience of pleasure.

When the tide turns suddenly and we find ourselves in drama, the first thing most of us do is blame everything else around us, we push against it, we resist. We berate the moment with why me, why now! We don’t understand this turn of events, life is not supposed to be like this, where did the high go?

It’s the law of nature that what we resist persists and what we push against pushes back, simple physics. Don’t hold on to the experience be it good or bad, don’t resist the bad or cling to the good. Absolutely everything is in constant motion, the only thing we can be sure of in life is change. Nothing is permanent, its believing that it is that causes us to suffer.

I had one of those weeks where the tide turned and I watched it flow out, patiently, calmly and powerfully. I handled what I could and the rest I accepted and let it be what it needed to be. Watching and flowing with it. I have found that life works so much better when we allow ourselves to move with what is happening as opposed to against it. Experiences tend to even out and we don’t get such great extremes. By remaining non-attached and allowing everything to be as it is we pass through the more challenging times a little smoother and a lot faster.

“Sometimes it’s time to express and ride the waves and sometimes it’s time to pull back, be quiet and reflect.” - DBH